Ronald Aduddell killed by San Jose police after allegedly ramming police car and brandishing a gun

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A man killed by San Jose police Saturday after ramming a police cruiser and leading officers on a vehicle chase as he tried to throw things out of his car has been identified as Ronald Aduddell, police said. Aduddell, 28, of San Jose was shot to death by two officers Saturday afternoon in what was the San Jose Police Department’s first officer-involved shooting of the year, police said.

At about 2:36 p.m., a patrol officer in West San Jose spotted a man in a Ford Contour acting suspicious near Union and Bascom avenues and tried to pull the car over, police said. The driver of the Ford drove away at a high speed but the officer opted not to pursue him out of concern for public safety, police said. The officer drove on and located the same car a short time later, then watched the driver ram the officer’s marked patrol car head-on, police said.

The officer broadcast the incident to other police and reported that the driver had brandished a handgun at him in a threatening manner, police said. As other officers joined in pursuing the Ford, they witnessed the driver throwing out many items including a purse and other property that allegedly did not belong to the suspect, police said. The car chase went from Bascom Avenue down to southbound state Highway 85, where the initial officer tried to block the suspect’s car to protect other drivers but the suspect tried to drive the wrong way against traffic.

The suspect’s maneuver caused a collision that damaged the officer’s car so much he had to stop, police said. Two other officers resumed the pursuit of the Ford to the area of Blossom and Calero avenues in South San Jose where the suspect, whose car was also badly damaged from the collision, started to slow down, police said. The officers, to put an end to the chase, turned their patrol cars to box in the Ford, which finally stopped in the 5800 block of Blossom Avenue The driver then exited the car and appeared to have his hands on his waistband area while fleeing, police said.

The two officers, recalling the broadcast about the suspect brandishing a firearm, shot him in self-defense and he died a short time later, police said. The officers were unable to find any weapons on the suspect or in his vehicle. The license plates on the suspect’s car had been stolen, police said. The two officers who shot Aduddell have been placed on administrative leave and the shooting is under investigation by the San Jose Police Department homicide unit, police said. Police have asked anyone who may have located the suspect’s gun in the area of Bascom and Union or Blossom and Calera or have any information about the shooting to contact the homicide unit at (408) 277-5283. J